Now, researchers are testing a new way to help people get at least some of their hearing back.

Dennis Murnane might be taking one of the most important tests of his life. He's finding out whether his hearing is returning.

It's unclear what caused Murnane's sudden hearing loss, and now instead of hearing a beep in his left ear, he just hears static.

"It just totally throws your world out of whack, because you're used to hearing everything, and now you're hearing half of it," Murnane said.

Doctors aren't sure why it works, but they say the steroid cortisone seems to help problems associated with sudden hearing loss, including inflammation. But high doses of cortisone pills can cause serious side effects in people with high blood pressure, diabetes and other medical problems.

So, Murnane is trying a new technique being tested at the The Cleveland Clinic and seven other medical centers nationwide.

"There's been some evidence from place to place and doctor to doctor that sometimes giving a shot of cortisone behind the eardrum can recover sudden deafness up to good levels," said Dr. Gordon Hughes of The Cleveland Clinic.

Researchers now want to know whether injecting the medicine will get the same results as pills without the side effects.

It's been a few weeks since Murnane's first injection and early results seem promising.

"I can't put a phone to my ear or anything like that, but I hear noises, which is quite an improvement," Murnane said.

It's improvement that Murnane said may not have been possible without the injections.

Hughes said the researchers are continuing to enlist patients for this five-year study. The study is being funded by the National Institutes of Health.

From WNBC.com